Hunting

Ropes are the long standing traditional way to fasten or tie things down. These days, those ratchet devices with straps and hooks have replaced knots and loops.
For some of us older people, ropes are still the logical tie-down tool. I have found...more

The suggestions I make here also apply to a November Dempster Highway caribou hunt, but our big winter hunt is for wood bison and certain rifle care options should be considered for this hunt in extreme cold conditions.more

The Yukon Trappers Association and the Northern Renewable Resources council are teaming up in an effort to get Yukoners buying local fur.
The Unfurled project is a series of events culminating in one full day of workshops, demonstrations, and a...more

This past summer was frenzy of unwanted bear behaviour. Western/northern Canada and Alaska saw a high number of maulings and close encounters with both black and grizzly bears.
In many bear encounters the likely cause can be traced back to...more

After a few years of effort trying to put this plan together, the Yukon is now up and running with a “Hunters For The Hungry” type of meat sharing program. “Hunters For The Hungry” is in place in all 50 states in the United States and a similar...more

Gold-mining in the Yukon River watershed took place well before the Klondike discovery. It started in the Forty-Mile River in 1886 with 600 miners participating, and Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka (1892) described 100 to 200 miners working the...more

Due to knee, back and hip problems, I haven’t slept in a tent for four to five years. It was always a great experience, sleeping on the ground on ensolite pads in small tents in remote locations.
Having good equipment and being worn out from a...more

The late 1950s and ’60s were exciting years for this young 24-year-old Conservation Officer in Ontario.
My first three winters in the eastern part of the province were spent doing a life study of a bird known as the Hungarian partridge...more

It has long been accepted that the tallest of tales reside in areas where fishing and hunting abound. It’s hard to say what exactly it is about the pristine waters of a prime fishing hole or a swamp at rut, but it seems that these climates, more...more

Bringing up a family back in the 50s and 60s was much different than the modern rush to get through life of today, which is mostly controlled by computers and a lack of one-on-one, face-to-face communication. Being brought up in the 30s, during...more

Yukon’s history – its time scale and events – is different from any other Canadian jurisdiction. The northern portion of the Territory was part of Beringia, an ice-free area that extended from the Yukon and Alaska across the Bering Land-bridge...more

It happens to everyone who gets their meat several hundred pounds at a time: things get freezer burnt. And while it may not look appetizing, those unfortunate packs of meat are still very much edible and can still be delicious if you know how to...more

Last week I met a husband and wife in a local grocery store. The kind lady said she liked my columns on kayaking and the outdoor ventures to some amazing places, but not about hunting and killing animals.
“Why do you hunt animals?” she asked.more

Even from the isolation of our north of 60 towns, one is able to equip themselves without reaching onto internet shelving any more than necessary.
With so many amazing, new, big-ticket items, some of the things that have really changed the way I...more

The saying in Yukon is you only truly experience the Yukon when you get out in the wilderness, and those words are accurate beyond belief.From incredible hikes, to a free boat ride, to some refreshing beers and a Sunday afternoon Canadian barbecue...more

One of my favourite things about living in the Yukon is being able to eat wild game. Like, a lot of wild game.
And I know that many of you are in the same glorious position – so here is my attempt to give some of the hunters out there some recipes...more

Growing up in the 1930 and early 40s was tough times. First, there was the Great Depression, followed closely by the Second World War. For the average family, money was tough, far tougher than today and rabbits and hares often graced the supper...more

The first time I saw this sign, I had to stop and pull over on the side of the road to make sure I had read it correctly. It was early spring in 2012 and I was travelling up the Alaska Highway for the first of what would be uncountable times...more

Ryan MacGillivray has been sheep hunting for 10 years. Three years ago, he had the idea to start a boot camp for sheep hunters. He did this because he knew the participants in the camp would push him to train harder for the sheep hunting season.more

On a recent half-day ice-fishing adventure with our son, I got to experience some of the benefits of a portable burn barrel that he has been using for the past five or six years. He puts it to use throughout the year, but spring/autumn hunts and...more